This
course is the final examination for philosophy majors. Its purpose is to draw
the philosophy program together, showing each portion to be a part of a
coherent whole, and to have the students demonstrate an essential understanding
of the program, the discipline, and the students’ place within the
discipline. The fulfillment of this twofold purpose will require that students
pass a comprehensive examination, and write a publishable senior essay which
they will defend in a professional type of setting.

This course is designated Writing
Intensive; a grade of C or higher in this course is required for this course to
count toward the six credit-hour Writing Intensive graduation requirement for
Ferrum College.A student cannot earn a
grade of C or higher in this course unless he or she earns a C or higher on the
writing assignments required by the course.

Prerequisite for
498:Philosophy major and Senior Status

Prerequisite for
499:Passing grade in 498

Two hours, two
credits each.

VI.Purpose:

This
course is both a capstone course and a program assessment mechanism.No student should graduate from FerrumCollege
with a degree in philosophy without the essential knowledge presented
throughout the curriculum, including the knowledge of how to write
philosophically at a professional level.As this course is the final instructional element in the students’
advancement toward this knowledge, the achievement of which it is also
assessing, no student will be allowed to graduate who has not passed it.This course may be repeated as many times as
is necessary for a student to pass it.

VII.Instructional Methodology and Use of Technology

Students will be directed by their professors in their
preparations for three oral comprehensive examinations and the writing of a
senior essay that will be presented and defended in a public setting.Each of the three exams may be taken up to
three times during the course.The exams
will cover no new material.Only
material encountered in some other portion of the philosophy program may be on
the exams.

VIII.College-wide Outcomes

Students
will demonstrate an integrated knowledge in the liberal arts

Students will think critically and solve
problems through analysis, evaluation, and inference.

Students will communicate with unity of
purpose and coherent organization consistent with standard rules and recognized
conventions using appropriate methodologies

Students will demonstrate a depth of knowledge,
capability and ethical reasoning in a chosen field.

Program
Outcomes:

All outcomes are assessed by means of
comprehensive exams and the senior essay.

·Philosophy graduates
will have a basic knowledge of the philosophical standpoints of the major
thinkers in the history of philosophy including the following: Socrates, Plato,
Augustine, Anselm, Aquinas, Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz, Locke, Berkeley, Hume,
Kant, Hegel, Marx, Kierkegaard, and Nietzshe.

·Philosophy
graduates will have a basic understanding of the essential positions,
movements, and schools of thought in the history of philosophy including the
following: realism, idealism, materialism, dualism, rationalism, empiricism, Marxism,
analytical philosophy, phenomenology, and existential philosophy.

·Philosophy
graduates will have a basic knowledge of the fundamental problems of
metaphysics, and their potential solutions, including the following:the ultimate nature of reality, the existence
of God, the problem of universals, the nature of human existence, the mind/body
problem, the freedom of the will, and death and immortality.

·Philosophy
graduates will have a basic understanding of the fundamental problems of
epistemology, and their potential solutions, including the following:skepticism, the nature of knowledge, the
nature of truth, the problem of induction, and the nature of science.

·Philosophy
graduates will have a basic knowledge of the fundamental problems of value theory,
and their potential solutions, including the following: the nature of moral
judgments, the role of ethical theories, rights and obligations, the value of
sovereign authority, and reasoning with respect to contemporary moral problems
such as abortion, euthanasia, suicide, capital punishment, animal right, and
sexual relations.

·Philosophy
graduates will have a basic knowledge of logic including the following: the
nature of argument, deduction and induction, validity and soundness,
categorical logic, propositional logic, informal fallacies, tautology,
contingency, and contradiction.

·Philosophy
graduates will be critical thinkers who are able to formulate arguments and
properly evaluate the arguments of others.

·Philosophy
graduates will have a basic knowledge of the Socratic Method and the role of
dialectics in philosophical inquiry.

IX.Course Requirements/Assignments:

a.Attendance

i.Students who miss
class should have their heads examined.However, responsibility for class attendance belongs exclusively to students;
hence, class attendance will not be required.Yet, students should be advised that a choice to miss class is
tantamount to a choice to fail the class.

ii.Examinations and
quizzes are not optional.Students must
take them when they are scheduled unless the professor is contacted in advance,
by e-mail, alerting him to the reason for missing the assignment.Students should understand that only good
reasons will be accepted, and that most reasons students offer for missing are
not good ones.Make-up assignments will
be given only if these conditions are met.If students miss pop-quizzes, there will be no make-ups.

iii.Illness is always
a good reason for missing class, as well as tests.Moreover, in a time of a potential pandemic,
students with potentially contagious illnesses must not attend class.If students come to class sneezing, coughing,
snotting, or showing any signs of fever, they will have to leave.

b.Assignments:

i.Students must
pass an oral exam on the history of philosophy aimed at the material identified
in the first two program outcomes

ii.Students must
pass an oral exam on the problems of philosophy aimed at the material
identified in program outcomes three, four, and five.

iii.Students must
pass an oral exam on logic and other methodologies aimed at the material
identified in program outcomes six, seven, and eight.

iv.Students must
write a senior essay that will be presented and defended in a public
setting.This essay must defend a
clearly stated thesis via original argumentation based on research in primary
sources.

c.Assignments and Time Table Specific to PHI 498:

i.Students must
publish the senior essays from the previous year in the department’s
online journal before attempting any of the comprehensive examinations.

ii.Students must
pass their comprehensive examination in logic.Three attempts are allowed with a minimum of a one week interval between
each attempt.Although it may be done
earlier, students must make their first attempt at passing this examination
during the fourth week of the semester, and it must be passed by the end of the
eighth week.Students must contact the
philosophy faculty at least one week in advance of any attempt to arrange a
date and time period during which the attempt will be made.

iii.A thesis
statement for the senior essay must be submitted to the philosophy faculty no
later than end of the fifth week of the semester.

iv.The first draft
of the prospectus for the senior essay, inclusive of the main argument and a
description of the essential research, is to be submitted to the philosophy
faculty no later than the beginning of the mid-term break.This draft should be no longer than one
page.

v.The final version
of the prospectus for the senior essay will be presented to the philosophy
faculty no later than the end of the eighth week of the semester.

vi.A complete
general outline of the senior essay will be submitted to the philosophy faculty
no later than the end of the end of the ninth week of the semester.

vii.The first
installment of the senior essay, inclusive of the introduction, will be
submitted to the philosophy faculty no later than the end of the twelfth week
of the semester.This installment should
be at least five pages long, but a larger installment is encouraged.

d.Assignments and Time table specific to PHI 499:

I.A second
installment of the senior essay, including responses to the comments of the
philosophy faculty on the first installment, will be submitted to the
philosophy faculty no later than the end of the second week of the
semester.With this draft, the essay
should be approximately half complete, the additional portion, of course, in
rough form.

II.A third
installment of the senior essay, including responses to the comments of the
philosophy faculty on the second installment, will be submitted to the
philosophy faculty no later than the end of the fifth week of the semester.With this draft, the essay should be
approximately three quarters complete, the additional portion, of course, in
rough form.

III.Students must
pass their other two comprehensive examinations.The order is at the discretion of each
student.Three attempts at each
examination are allowed with a minimum of a one week interval between each
attempt.Although it may be done
earlier, students must make their first attempt at passing their second
comprehensive examination during the fourth week of the semester and it must be
passed by the end of the eighth week.

IV.Although it may
be done earlier, students must make their first attempt at passing their third
comprehensive examination during the eighth week of the semester and it must be
passed by the end of the twelfth week.

V.A fourth installment
of the senior essay, including responses to the comments of the philosophy
faculty on the third installment, will be submitted to the philosophy faculty
no later than the end of the tenth week of the semester.With this draft, the essay should be
complete, the additional portion, of course, in rough form.

VI.The final version
of the senior essay, i.e., the version that is to be presented, must be
presented to the philosophy faculty at least two days in advance of the
presentation.

e.Co-requirements

i.Entering the room
late is disruptive and rude.Do not be
late to class.If students are late,
they might not be allowed to enter class.

ii.Cell phones are
also disruptive and will be seen as mechanisms for cheating.Active texting or
receiving text messages in class is prohibited.Cell phones must be turned off and all headsets must be removed.If students do not comply, they will have to
leave class.

iii.Proper classroom
attire is essential to a learning environment.Do not wear underwear as outerwear, and do not wear pajamas to
class.If students do not comply, they
will have to leave class.

iv.It is horribly
rude to leave the room during class.Students may not leave to go to the rest room, to drink, or to engage in
any other non-emergent activity.If
students become aware of emergencies, they may leave without asking
permission.

X.Evaluation and Grading Scale:Distinguished A=90

B=80

C=70

F= Below 70

XI.Academic Integrity:

In all instances, policies identified in the Ferrum
College Catalog and the Ferrum College Student and Faculty Handbooks regarding
the Honor System shall be followed.Students are expected to display academic integrity at all times and in
all circumstances.

Statement on
Plagiarism:

Plagiarism
is using the words or ideas of another writer including quoting without using
quotation marks, paraphrasing without citation, using another’s ideas
without giving credit.Plagiarism is one
of the gravest offenses that can be committed in an academic institution, and
the philosophy faculty will seek the severest penalties available for those
committing this offense.

I.Disability Services:

Office of Academic Accessibility (OAA):

As directed by FerrumCollege’s
policy, any student with a disability who qualifies for and seeks academic
accommodations (such as testing or other services) must work through the Office
for Academic Accessibility for accommodations. The office is located Lower StanleyLibrary, Office
110 and the director may be reached by phone at 365-4262 or by email at nbeach@ferrum.edu . Please remember that
accommodations cannot be granted retroactively; they must be requested in a
timely manner prior to when the accommodation is needed. Students who
wish to use accommodations through OAA are encouraged to meet with the director
during the first weeks of the semester to discuss the process, and are also
invited to read the policy manual on www.ferrum.edu/disability
for specific information.